Ballad of the three wise men

1
When Balthazar surveyed the night
A mix of panic and delight
Spread through his being, for a star,
Stamped into his mind like a scar,
The subject of his calculations,
Was rising above the vast oceans
Of sand, and he knew what it was,
And that there was no time to pause,
And so the morning found him deep
Into the desert without sleep.
The trip was fine, but he was shaken
By the strange sight of a lone horseman
On a red horse, who rode into view
Waving a sword — Balthazar knew
What this meant, and sure enough a flood
Met him as he approached, the blood
Of those who died from countless wars,
And Balthazar bewailed the hours
That men had spent slaying each other,
And looked up, praying for good weather.

2
That night, young Caspar saw the rise
Of a star, which despite its size
Possessed a music all its own,
He knew the meaning of its tone.
Young Caspar thought of going east.
Fitting his every man and beast,
He set out for the endless desert
Which they would cross with boundless effort–
They saw a man on a black horse
Galloping in to block their course,
Holding a pair of weighing scales,
Which Caspar knew bespoke travails–
The cry for food in every mouth
(They headed slightly for the south).

3
In Persia, Melchior checked his book
To confirm if the star he took
For that for which he waited for years
Was the true one, and there were tears
In his eyes, being proved correct
And so decided to effect
His voyage too long in the scheme
Towards the bright east with his team.
When they had travelled for a week
Into the wild, they had a peek
Through the thick haze, and held their breath –
They saw, on an ashen horse, Death,
With him a gruesome entourage —
The underworld as a mirage,
And of this Melchior knew the essence –
With famine, sword and pestilence
And beasts, Death killed waving his blade,
And Time, of course, this must be said,
But Melchior knew Death was no victor,
Having in mind a bigger picture.

4
Outside Jerusalem they met,
And though I am not asked, my bet
Is that immediately they knew
Each other – as they all would do
Who seek the truth – and all of them
When they had left Jerusalem,
After they got Herod’s advice,
And again saw the star arise
To show the way, must have let on
About the three horsemen — but none
Of them had seen the fourth, whose horse
Was white, the conqueror, the source
Of all authority, possessed
Of bow and crown, in all things blest.
And when they found the house and saw
The infant, they proceeded to draw
Gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh,
And seeing Mary spoke to her
About their journey, and she smiled,
And kissed the fingers of her child.
And as they left, the wise men heard
A neigh, and then without a word
Looked at each other, for from among
The cattle by a manger, swung
A graceful horse tied to a post,
White as a consecrated Host.